Double glazed skylight



a3 10, 1938. G. H. LENKE DOUBLE GLAZED SKYLICTHT Filed Jan. 28, 1957 3Sheets-.Sheet l mmm III

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May 10, 1938. G. H. LENKE DOUBLE GLAZED SKYLIGHT 5 Sheets-Sheet 2gmc/wim: H LENK Filed Jan. 28, 193'? Banane G. H. LENKE DOUBLE GLAZEDSKYLIGHT Filed Jan. 28, 1957 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 gmc/rm: Een Rp @H LENKE,

May 10, 1938.

Patented May 10, 1938 UNITED STATES DOUBLE GLAZED sKYLIGH'r George HenryLenke, Elmhurst, Ill., assigner of one-half to Julius J. Ohlis, OakPark, Ill.

Application January 28, 1937, Serial No. 122,849

18 Claims.

This invention relates to skylights and `similar devices having for itsobject to provide a construction which is simple in parts and moreefficient in use than those heretofore proposed.

With these and other objects in View the invention resides in the noveldetails of construction and combinations of parts as will be disclosedmore fully hereinafter and particularly pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings forming a part of thisspecication and in which like numerals designate like parts in all theviews,-

Fig. 1 isa vertical sectional View through a skylight showing one formof this invention;

Fig. 2 is a partial bottom plan view of the junction of a plurality oflower skylight panes;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the parts shown in Fig. 2 takenas on the line 3--3 thereof and looking in the direction of the arrows;

,20 Figs. 4 and 5 are detail Views of modifiedmeans for tensioningthelowermost panes in a skylight;

Fig. 6 is a View somewhat similar to Fig. l but showing a modiflcationofthe double glazing feature wherein the lower panes are mounted in `ahinged sash;

Fig. 'l is a detail sectional view of the parts shown in Fig. 6 with thesash in partially lowered position;

Fig. 'la is a sectional detail view in partial perspective of a portionof a saddle bracket associated with `a. hinged sash; p

Fig. 8 is a detail vertical sectional view showing a modication of thetension securement of the lowermost panes, said View taken as on theline 8-.8 of Fig. l10 and looking in the direction of the arrow;

Fig. 9 ,is a view similar to Fig. 8 but taken as on the line 9-9 of Fig.10 andlookingin the direction of the arrow;

Fig. 10 is a bottom `plan View of the modified constructionshown inFigs. 8 and 9;

Fig. 11 is a partial perspective View of a corner of the shieldfor thelowermost panes shown in Figs. 8, 9 and 10;

Fig. 1 2 is aperspective view showing the junction of two intersectingconcrete ribs with their reinforcements, and the metallic socket in thebottom thereof for receiving an anchor bolt;

Fig. 13 is a partial perspective viewillustrating lo the application ofa pane to its metal shield; and

Fig. 14 is an enlarged sectional view of the construction shown in Fig.9.

This invention is particularly directed to skylights, vault lights andother similar structures mp5 wherein doubleglazing is employed, that isto (Cl. 10S- 16) say, Where glass panes are provided in spaced planes toprovide an air space between the panes. This invention also constitutesan improvement over that disclosed in U. S. Letters Patent No. 2,055,901granted September 29, 1936 to George H. Lenke entitled Roof light andthe like, in that double glazing is employed and a more efficientconstruction provided with respect to the upper panes and theirsupports.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly Fig. 1 thereof, thereis disclosed a roof generally indicated by the numeral l having anupstanding curb 2 defining or limiting a skylight opening generallyindicated by the numeral 3, and 4 indicates an intermediate skylightsupporting beam or the upper extremity of a` partition wall, or anyother structural part of the building, the parts l Zand beingillustratedas formed of concrete. The skylight comprises a structure ofpoured concrete including side portions such as 5 and a plurality ofintersecting ribs t extending from one side portion to another therebycreating light admitting openings in the skylight `as readilyunderstood, the ribs being provided with reinforcing elements 1 and 8such as metal rods embedded within the concrete portions 5 vand 6. 9indicates another side portion of the `skylight structure provided inthe way of an underlying partition or structural beam such as which mayalso support a concrete side portion lll similar to` .,0 the portion 9and defining a side of an adjacent skylight opening, with a spacebetween the portions 9 and lil to be filled as hereinafter described.

The inner edges of the side portions 5 and 9 are recessed to provide thehorizontalsurfaces indicated at l5 and I6, and `each of `the ribs 6 isformed to provide the horizontal upper surface indicated at l1, whichsurfaces I5, I6 and l1 are in a common plane, and likewise the bottomsurfaces of the members 5, and 9"are Vformed in 40 Vanother common planeparallel to said ffirst namedplane.` i

A metallic grid for the skylight opening 3 is provided comprising aframe having side members indicated by the numerals I8 and I9 which areof substantially Y shape in cross section, and substantially hat gridbars such as 20,`each bar centrally overlying a concrete rib, themembers I3, I9 and 20 having their upper extremities 1ying in a commonplane and their lower eXtrem- 50 ities embedded in the concrete of themembers 5,

6 and `9. Preferably the eXtreme upper edges of the members I8, I9 and29 are ilanged as shown, thexflange of the outer branch of each Y-shaped`side member beingY inwardly directed `or project- ,55

ing in the direction of the companion branch for a purpose which will bedisclosed later. Threaded sockets such as 2l extend inwardly from thebottom surfaces of the concrete members 5, E and 9 to receive the anchorbolts such as 22 for holding the lower panes in position.

The grid as above described will be understood to form a plurality ofcells or openings and therefore the grid bars 29 constitute separatorsdeflning openings for receiving the upper panes of glass indicated bythe numeral 23, each pane being slightly less in dimension than the sizeof the pane receiving opening so that, when the pane is properlypositioned within its opening, sealing composition 24 may be appliedaround the marginal edge of each pane to cement it to the metallic grid,the flanges above described on the grid members serving to secure saidcomposition in place.

Before each pane is put into its pane receiving opening in the grid, ithas applied to one surface thereof a ring-like metallic seat generallyindicated by the numeral 25, said seat being of the same contour as thepane and angularly formed as shown to p-rovide a pane engaging leg and asecond leg extending substantially perpendicularly from the surface ofthe pane. The former leg has a concave formation serving as a reservoirto receive and hold a cementitious compound by means of which the seatis secured to the pane, and the second leg is made thin and suitablyformed to be anchored in the concrete of the members 5, B and 9, thisformation of the second leg being represented in the drawings by a bendbut other anchoring means could as well be provided. The seat is appliedto the glass pane so as to be substantially centered thereon with theanchoring legs approximately equidistantly spaced from the edges of thepane.

In setting the pane in the grid opening, the anchoring legs are pusheddown into the concrete of the members 5, 6 and 9 to bring the topsurface of the pane into the plane of the upper extremities of the gridmembers. The depth of the recesses defining the surfaces I5 and I6 (and.therefore the common plane including the rib surfaces IT), and thethickness of the panes 23, are such that when the panes have thus beenset in the grid and the concrete structure has hardened, the bottomsurfaces of said panes will be spaced above the common plane of thesurfaces I5, I6 and I'I. Therefore, when the sealing compound 24 isapplied, not only will it ll the spaces around the margins of each pane,but it will also ow under the edge portion of the pane to fill the spacetherebeneath, the anchoring legs of the metallic seat 25 stopping saidflow to prevent the sealing compound from smearing the exposed undersurface of the pane. The spacing of the seat 25 from the edge of thepane is such that each pane has approximately contact with twice theamount of sealing compound as in heretofore known constructions or,putting it in other words, by this invention substantially twice theamount of surface contact between the pane and the sealing compound ispermitted over that heretofore made possible where the sealing compoundcontacts only the vertical marginal surface of the pane.

In order to protect the top of the concrete members 5 and 9, a sheet offlashing such as 39 is employed, one edge portion thereof being formedwith a downwardly extending and in- Wardly turned v fo1d as indicated,at 3l so that the extreme edge may springingly engage under' the flangeof the outer branch of the Y side mem ber I8 of the grid and beinterlocked therewith,. a wedge 32 of soft lead or other suitablematerial being positioned between the two branches and pressing againstsaid fold to insure this interlocked engagement, the space above saidwedge being lled with sealing compound or other suitable ller. Theopposite edge portion of the flashing sheet may be suitably joined as bythe seam indicated at 33, to the upper edge portion of a vertical sheetof flashing 34 applied to the side of the curb 2. By this constructionit is possible to join the ashings 30 and 34 by the seam 33 and then toapply the combined flashings to the curb by simply snapping the V fold3l into spring locked position with the outer branch of the Y member I8.A second sheet of flashing 35 has one edge portion provided with asimilar V fold as indicated at 36 to interlock with the ange of theouter branch of the other Y side member I9, said interlocking beinginsured against unfastening by a similar wedge 3l, the opposite edgeportion of said sheet bent downwardly over the surface of the concretemember 9 and the extreme edge upturned as at 39 in the pocket or spacebetween the concrete members 9 and I9. A third sheet of flashing 39, tocover the concrete member I0, is formed similarly to the sheet 35 and aninverted U shaped piece of flashing is dropped over the two upturnededges such as 38 in said pocket, and sealing compound or other suitableller indicated at 49 packed in said pocket thereover to provide anexpansion joint. In other words, though not illustrated for the sake ofsimplicity in the drawings, it will be understood that the skylightopening 3 with its associated grid framing and glass panes may be whollyor partially duplicated with the concrete portion I9 forming a sidethereof, and hence the flashings 35 and 39 are substantially duplicatedfor such adjacent skylight openings.

The lower glazing is formed as follows. Two panes of glass 45 and 46 aresecured in place between two U shaped channel members 41 and 48 withsealing compound filling the interior space 49 between said members andaround the marginal edges of the panes, the anchor bolt 22 beingthreaded into the socket 2| to hold the parts in their assembledpositionv as shown, a helical spring 5D being interposed between thehead of the bolt and the under channel member 49 to permit yieldabilityunder changes of temperature as will be readily understood. At theextreme sides of the skylight opening, modified forms of the channelssuch as 41 may be employed for holding the lower panes, a single boxlikemember 5I being shown at the left side of Fig. l and a fabrication of aplurality of angularly formed members being shown for example at theright hand side of said figure; other variations are possible.

The metallic members for holding the lower panes may be formed as aone-piece grill or they may be individual members, and in the lattercase a practical construction is indicated in Figs. 2 and 3 from whichit will be observed that the end of each individual member is angularlycut as indicated at 55 and 56 from opposite sides to fit a companionindividual member angularly disposed thereto. In other words it is to beunderstood that the ribs 6 may intersect each other at different anglesas desired to form var- Aious shaped skylight openings, but from Fig. 2it Cil bers. rwill have their ends similarly mitred.

`shown in Fig. 3.

`will be obvious `that said iribs `are `disposed. at Lthe sameAmannerthat "thesstud E5 secured the right angles-to each other`whereforelthe end of `the lower channel memberllwill have 45 mitre cutsas `indicated at and I56, the latter to nt `the corresponding vmitre cut`on the adjacent rlower' channel member such as51. .'I'he intersectionof the mitrecuts` is preferably made circular as indicated at 58 toaccommodate the shank of the anchorbolt 22, and a plate 59 is providedto cover, and aid in supporting, the meeting ends of the lower adjacentchannel mem The upper channel members such as 4l In Fig. 4 the lowerchannel suchas 48 has a spring clip-Siir interposed between it and thehead `of the anchor bolt 22 to take the place of and perform thefunction of the helical spring 5|) In Fig. 5 the lower channel memberVis specially7 formed as shown at 6| to provide ai combination oftheparts 48 and 60 illustrated in Fig. 4, the formation 6| serving as aspringlcap or spring channel tohold the panes in position under `varyingtemperatures.

`Corning now to Figs. 6, 7 and 'la it will be seen that the upperglazing is the same as hereinbefore `described but that` the lowerglazing has been modified to .provide a hinged section permitting readyaccess toithespace between the upper and ylower glasses orpanes as wellas permitting cleaning of the underside of the upperpanes and the uppersideof the lower panes. This construction `provides the :socket 2|embedded in a concrete ribf toreceive theupper threaded end of a stud(i5 having anut on said threaded end for clamping a saddle bracket tosaid rib with a strip 61 of yieldable material interposed therebetweenas shown, this saddle bracket extending under the full length of the rib`6, or `extending a distance thereunder equal to any desired multiple ofthe spacing of the `intersecting ribs such as 68, according to the sizeof the skylight and/or the weight and size of the hinge-d sectiondesired. This saddle bracket has a mainbody portion, of inverted U shapein cross section, the ends of which are outwardly flared to form astirrup or glazing strip (i9 `with an upturned edge portion 10 servingas a hook about which the `lower sash may turn.

The lower -sash lmay comprise a single glass pane or a multiple thereof,mounted in a frame generally `indicated by the lnumeral one side ofwhich is formed by the channel member 12 and the other three sides `ofrwhich are `formed by angle bars, the channel 'I2 being provided to tandrest upon the glazingstrip 69 and being capable of pivotingat itsloweriedge in the stirrup formed bythe `upturned edge 10 and saidglazing strip as will be perfectly clear from Fig. '7. When the sashcontains multiple glasses there is provided an intermediate stile member1li generally of U shape cross section which member is `secured at itsends to the sides of the sash, the

panes being secured in the sash by sealing compound or any othersuitable substance asindicated at l5. It will be understood thattheglazing strip 65 with its associated upturned edge Hl will be suitablyinterrupted (as by the formation of a slot ma therein) in the way of thevertical flanges of the side members of the frame 'il to permit thehinged turning movement of said frame.

The side ofthe sash opposite its hinge is formed byan angle bar 'i3which, when the sash is closed,

`is adapted to lie `adjacent one depending leg of the U -bar 'i6 securedto another rib by a `stud in saddle bracket 55, itbeing `understoodthatthe `other depending leg of saidl U bar may be adapted to receivethereagainst the free end of another sash 'Vl similarito the sash ll. Tohold the free end of the sash in closed position there is providedastrap `clip 18 `having a dished central portion adapted tot the spacebetween the depending ylegs of `the `U bar 16 and having outwardlyturned iianges `such as 'I9 adapted to t .underi the loweredgesi of saidlegs fas `well as -the 'Sangle lbars13 of 1thef-adjacent` sashes, saidclipbein'g secured inplace by ainut 8B lthreadedon the lower Send of-thestud `A glazing cap `8| `of substantially channel "formation is:placed under "the'hinge-dfendas -well as the free end ofeach sash, saidcap being held lin place by the cap nut `82, and insome cases forappearance a similar `intermediate glazing cap `Sti may be se- `cured bythe bolt 84 Vtapped into each of the` Figs. `8 to `l4 itwill'belobserved that the upper l.

glazing is similarto that previously described but that in the lowerglazing the `metallic springs have Lbeen omitted andfin their placestrips 99 of rubherlor other'compressible material are cemented to ribs6 and that the upper surfaces of the lower panes such as 9| and 92 arepressed up against -theserubber strips to form a seal which is yieldableunder temperature variations.

There is provided a metallic shield or frame generally identified bythenumeral 93 the sides of `which comprise a vertical flange'94 and a hor-`izontal flange S5 the extremeedge of the latter being upwardly directedand relatively sharpened as at 96 to provide a minimum of contact with`the under surface ofthe pane. A space is provided between the margins ofthe pane and each vertical 'angegfL which space is filled with sealingcompound or the like as indicated at 91, said compound passing under theedge portions of the pane and lling the space created by the raised edge96 of said shield. Each corner of the shield islprovided with a quarterround recess S8 having `the bored bottom wall or shoulder 99 foraccommodating respectively -the head and the shank of a bolt |00threaded into a socket member ||i| secured in the bottom of the concreteribs by virtue of an enlarged anchor portion or-button |02. A helicalspring |`i|3 is positioned between the bolt head and the shoulder S9 tohold the shield under tension againstthe rubber strip 90.

It is obvious that those skilled in the art may vary lthe details ofconstruction and arrangements `of parts without departing from thespirit -of this invention and therefore it is not desired `to be limitedto the exact foregoing description except as may be demanded by theclaims.

What is claimed is: l 1. In a structure of the `class described thecombination of a metal grid consisting of pane` separators `definingpane receiving openings; panes mounted in said openings in spacedrelation to said separators; aller between said panes and saidseparators; a `concrete support for said separators; and rigid means forsupporting said The glazing caps 8| and 83 may i the under surface `ofthe concrete panes in said openings entirely independently of said grid,said means anchored within the concrete support and spacing said panesfrom a surface thereof.

2. As an article of manufacture, a grid comprising a frame having sidemembers of generally Y-shaped section, and substantially flat grid barsextending between the sides of said frame, the outer branch of each sidemember having an inwardly directed edge.

3. In combination, a concrete support, a metal grid embedded in saidsupport and comprising metal separators defining grid openings; panesmounted in said openings; and metallic means for supporting said panesin said openings, said means spaced from said separators and anchored insaid concrete support.

4. In combination, a grid comprising a frame, a pocket formed in theupper surface of said frame, a lip extending inwardly of said pocket atthe upper extremity of the outer side wall of the pocket, and a ashingformed separately of said grid and having an infolded edge adapted tosnap over and be springingly interlocked with the lower surface of saidlip,

5. In combination, supporting means, a pair of grids carried by saidsupporting means, a flashing associated with each grid said flashingcovering said supporting means and springingly interlocked with itsassociated grid, a pocket in said supporting means between said gridsand into which each flashing extends, and means to secure the end ofeach flashing in said pocket.

6. In combination, a support, a grid carried by said support, and havingan inturned outer edge, and a flashing formed separately of said grid,said flashing covering said support and having an infolded edge adaptedto snap over and be springingly interlocked with the lower surface ofthe grid edge.

'7. In a skylight construction the combination with a concrete frameworkprovided with a plurality of openings, light transmitting panes for theopenings, said framework being disposed wholly beneath said panes alongthe joints between adjacent panes, and metal pane-receiving shieldsseparate from and anchored in the concrete about the openings so as toleave the adjacent concrete exposed, of means engaging the panes andembedded in the concrete for spacing the panes from said shields and theconcrete so as to leave the concrete exposed along and under the edgeportions of the adjacent panes, and means engaging the panes and theshields for covering the exposed concrete.

8. In a structure of the class described, thecombination of a pair ofpanes, a metallic seat attached to each pane, a concrete support inwhich is embedded said metallic seat, said concrete support supportingadjacent margins of said panes and having its upper surface spacedwholly below the under surfaces of said panes by virtue of said metallicseats, a rigid metal separator embedded in said concrete support anddisposed between and spaced from adjacent margins of the panes, and awater-proof sealing ller interposed between the separator and theadjacent margins of the panes and filling the space created by saidmetallic seats.

9. A skylight structure comprising side members and ribs 'extending fromone side member to another; upper glazing mounted upon said members andsaid ribs; and lower glazing mounted in rigid frames secured to theunder surfaces of said members and said ribs, said securement adapted topermit movement of said frames in a direction away from the upperglazing.

10. A skylight structure comprising side members and ribs extending fromone side member to another; upper and lower glazing supported by saidstructure one of said glazings mounted 1n a rigid frame; and yieldingmeans to permit relative movement of said frame and its containedglazing in a direction away from the other glazing.

l1. A skylight structure comprising side members and ribs extending fromone side member to another; upper glazing mounted upon said members andsaid ribs; and lower glazing secured to the under surfaces of saidmembers and said ribs, said lower glazing consisting of metallic framingelements and panes carried thereby, said elements being of rigidchannel-like formation and containing therein a bonding substancebetween said elements and said panes, said elements having a headeddevice passing therethrough by which the framed glazing is secured inposition, and spring means for varying the tension between said deviceand said elements.

l2. A skylight structure comprising side mem-- bers and ribs extendingfrom one side member to another; upper glazing mounted upon said membersand said ribs; and lower glazing hingedly mounted to the under surfacesof said members and said ribs.

13. A skylight structure comprising side members and ribs extending fromone side member to another; upper glazing mounted upon said members andsaid ribs; and lower glazing secured to the under surfaces of saidmembers and said ribs,l

said lower glazing consisting of a metallic frame and panes carriedthereby, a saddle bracket carried by a rib and having hinged relationwith one of the frame elements, and a strap clip associated with anotherrib for supportingly engaging another of the frame elements to hold theframe in latched position.

14. A skylight structure comprising side members and ribs extending fromone side member to another; upper glazing mounted upon said members andsaid ribs; and lower glazing secured to the under surfaces of saidmembers and said ribs, said lower glazing consisting of a plurality ofpanes, a metallic shield for each pane, each shield provided with acorner recess adapted to contain only a portion of the securing means,and a bolt serving as the securing means and threadingly engaging a rib,said bolt substantially filling the combined recesses of a plurality ofadjoined shields, said bolt provided with spring means for varying thetension between the bolt head and a wall of said recesses.

15. In a skylight construction the combination with a concrete frameworkprovided with a plurality of openings, light transmitting panes for eachopening and comprising an upper pane and a lower pane, said frameworkbeing disposed wholly beneath said upper panes along the joints betweenadjacent panes, and metal pane-receiving shields one for each pane andseparate from each other and anchored to the concrete about theopenings, of means engaging the upper panes and embedded in the concretefor spacing the upper panes from their shields and the concrete so as toleave the concrete exposed along and under the edge portions of theadjacent upper panes, the lower shields yieldably anchored to theconcrete framework, and bonding means engaging and covering the exposedsurfacesv between each pane and its shield as well as the exposedsurfaces between each upper pane and the underlying concrete.

16. In skylight construction the combination of a pane; a metallicshield for said pane; a support for said shield; and a metallic seat forsaid pane independent of said shield and having a portion anchoredwithin said support.

17. In a skylight construction the combination of upper and lowerglazing and means to secure the same to frame members of the skylight,one of said glazings mounted in a rigid frame; and additional means forrendering yieldable said rigid frame and its contained glazing to permitmovement thereof in a direction away from the other glazing.

18. In a skylight construction the combination of upper and lowerglazing and means to secure the same to frame members of the skylight,one of said glazings mounted in a rigid frame with its securing meanspassing through said frame; and additional means for rendering yieldablesaid rigid frame and its contained glazing to permit movement thereof ina direction away from the other glazing GEORGE HENRY LENKE.

